The most recent 250 top stories.
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Refugee advocates say the Government's decision to send 10 unaccompanied children to a detention centre on Nauru has put the children at serious risk of mental health issues.
Topics: immigration, refugees, children, federal-government, mental-health, nauru, australia
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| UpdatedTensions at the Manus Island detention centre erupted into a violent breakout last night, after asylum seekers were told their only option for resettlement was to live in Papua New Guinea.
Thirty-five asylum seekers escaped from the centre through a fence about 6:15pm (local time) but Immigration Minister Scott Morrison says they were quickly recaptured.
Mr Morrison says all "non-essential staff" were evacuated, several internal fences were knocked down, safety-glass panels were smashed, bunk beds were "broken apart" and the pieces used as weapons and thrown.
Eight asylum seekers have been arrested and 19 have been treated at the centre's medical clinic, but Mr Morrison says none of the patients are "exhibiting life-threatening conditions".
Topics: refugees, immigration, community-and-society, federal-government, government-and-politics, papua-new-guinea
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| UpdatedOne of Coca-Cola's fastest-growing products, Frozen Coke and Frozen Fanta, was not included in the latest industry-funded study on soft drink consumption in Australia, which says we are drinking less of the sweet stuff than we were 15 years ago.
Topics: food-and-beverage, industry, research, obesity, health, diabetes, australia
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| UpdatedA court in WA has heard a Collingwood footballer was motivated by "sheer revenge" when he assaulted a man outside a nightclub on the state's south coast.
Marley Williams, 20, is on trial in the District Court charged with causing grievous bodily harm.
Topics: courts-and-trials, australian-football-league, albany-6330, perth-6000, collingwood-3066
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| UpdatedA major review into the impact of clean energy on retail power prices is expected to clear the way for the Government to make significant changes to the Renewable Energy Target (RET).
Topics: climate-change, environment, government-and-politics, federal-government, alternative-energy, energy, electricity-energy-and-utilities, australia
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The New South Wales Energy Minister Anthony Roberts says communities will have to embrace coal seam gas and shop around if they want to avoid a massive spike in gas prices.
Topics: state-parliament, oil-and-gas, nsw
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| UpdatedThe foreign investment review threshold will be lifted to over $1 billion under the South Korea free trade agreement, full details of which were released today.
The deal will see tariffs on primary products that range from around 15 per cent to more than 500 per cent removed.
Trade Minister Andrew Robb says that should grow Australia's agricultural exports to Korea by 75 per cent over the next 15 years.
Business and farmer groups have generally welcomed the deal, but some community groups warn certain provisions could allow Korean companies to sue the Australian Government over various policies.
Topics: business-economics-and-finance, trade, agreements-and-treaties, foreign-affairs, australia, korea-republic-of
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| UpdatedThe Community Services Minister Pru Goward is facing a fight with the Nationals to keep her seat at the next New South Wales election, after the party opened up nominations for pre-selection for Goulburn.
Topics: state-parliament, elections, goulburn-2580
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| UpdatedA three-quarters of a tonne quartz rock has been stolen from the National Rock Garden in Canberra.
Topics: police, act, canberra-2600, bendigo-3550
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| UpdatedThe Socceroos have unveiled their World Cup playing kit with the uniform paying tribute to the inaugural 1974 Cup team.
Topics: socceroos, soccer-world-cup, soccer, sport, sydney-2000, nsw, australia
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| UpdatedIndustry Super Australia has legal advice showing the Federal Government's planned changes to laws governing financial advice may not be lawful.
The Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) legislation took force in July last year, but the Coalition had announced plans to roll back elements of the laws.
Many of the changes would overturn reforms introduced in the wake of the Storm Financial collapse, in which some investors lost their life savings because of conflicted financial advice.
However, ISA's legal advice suggests a Government attempt to roll back some of the FoFA changes through regulation may be invalid, with financial advisers relying on the changes potentially exposed to legal action from clients.
Topics: regulation, business-economics-and-finance, australia
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| UpdatedA Queensland mother whose daughter was sexually abused by a teacher at a Catholic primary school has branded the actions of the school authorities as "disgusting".
Topics: law-crime-and-justice, crime, sexual-offences, child-abuse, schools, toowoomba-4350, brisbane-4000, qld
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| UpdatedSPC Ardmona avoided closure last week when its parent company Coca-Cola Amatil and the Victorian Government announced a $100 million investment plan to keep the ailing company in operation.
ABC Fact Check examines the main claims and counter claims made about the conditions and entitlements of SPC Ardmona's workforce.
Topics: manufacturing, fruit, food-processing, rural, food-and-beverage, federal-government, australia, vic
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| UpdatedRabbitohs star Sam Burgess will leave the NRL for English rugby club Bath after the teams agreed to a three-year deal.
Topics: nrl, rugby-league, sport, rugby-union, sydney-2000, nsw, australia, england, united-kingdom
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| UpdatedThree men who went missing in a cave at a national park on the New South Wales Southern Tablelands have been rescued.
Topics: emergency-incidents, goulburn-2580, nsw, act, canberra-2600
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| UpdatedThe ABC wants to hear from Australians who are managing properties in drought conditions.
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| UpdatedUkrainian opposition protesters have ended a two-month occupation of city hall in the capital Kiev, as part of an amnesty deal with the government.
In return, criminal charges will be dropped against protesters in relation to the ongoing civil unrest.
Topics: unrest-conflict-and-war, activism-and-lobbying, law-crime-and-justice, government-and-politics, police, ukraine
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| UpdatedShoes discovered at the murder scene of Daniel Morcombe had similar wear patterns to the shoes found in his room, a jury has heard.
Brisbane's Supreme Court has also been told how feral animals may have disturbed the crime scene where police located Daniel's remains.
Daniel was 13 when he vanished while waiting for a bus at Woombye on the Sunshine Coast in 2003.
The boy's remains were found near the Glass House Mountains eight years later.
Brett Peter Cowan has pleaded not guilty to murder.
Topics: courts-and-trials, murder-and-manslaughter, woombye-4559, maroochydore-4558, brisbane-4000
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America's intelligence agency, the NSA, is refusing to comment on the latest leak of top secret documents which appear to implicate Australian spies.
The document appears to show that Australia helped the US spy on an American law firm that was representing the Jakata in a trade dispute.
Topics: defence-and-national-security, trade, international-aid-and-trade, government-and-politics, international-law, law-crime-and-justice, information-and-communication, indonesia
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| UpdatedCuritiba, the venue for Australia's clash with Spain, looks set to be removed from the 2014 FIFA World Cup schedule.
Topics: soccer-world-cup, socceroos, soccer, sport, brazil
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| UpdatedThe child abuse royal commission will today turn its attention to how staff and Catholic Church officials at a Toowoomba primary school dealt with allegations of sexual offences against girls between 2007 and 2008.
Topics: royal-commissions, law-crime-and-justice, sexual-offences, education, primary-schools, child-abuse, children, toowoomba-4350
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| UpdatedA NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry has begun into allegations a former RailCorp employee and his sister solicited more than $1.5 million.
Joseph Camilleri was in charge of maintenance contracts for the rail agency while his sister, Carmen Attard, worked for the state's Department of Family and Community Services.
The inquiry has heard the pair used the money to help Mr Camilleri's daughter Jessica Camilleri who had massive gambling debts.
Topics: corruption, law-crime-and-justice, sydney-2000
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| UpdatedCate Blanchett has won Best Actress at Britain's BAFTA awards for her role in Blue Jasmine.
Topics: film-movies, arts-and-entertainment, awards-and-prizes, united-kingdom, australia
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| UpdatedA man and a woman are in police custody after a woman was stabbed to death at Logan, south of Brisbane.
The 23-year-old died after being stabbed in the chest at a house at Boronia Heights late last night.
Ambulance officers tried to revive her but she died at the scene.
Topics: crime, boronia-heights-4124, southport-4215
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| UpdatedPremier Jay Weatherill has dismissed questions about Cabinet support for an innovation project and Liberal leader Steven Marshall has sought to draw a line in the sand on public sector job cuts.
The campaign is officially underway for the South Australian election on March 15.
The leaders have debated the issues on ABC Radio, ahead of a second face-to-face encounter on tonight in the ABC TV studios, when voters will have their chance to question the major parties.
Topics: states-and-territories, public-sector, elections, government-and-politics, unions, sa, adelaide-5000, australia